Adventures in Student Ministry

We had a great night in THP Students as we began a new series called “A Well Story” by Taylor Johnson! We kicked off the night by watching the following video

Taylor started in John 4, with a woman coming to a well at noon. He pointed out that nobody in that culture went to the well at noon, and asked what would make her go when no one else would be there. Jesus is sitting at the well and asks her for a drink, and she lists the reasons he shouldn’t be talking to her: he’s a man, she’s a woman, he’s a Jew, she’s a Samaritan. Taylor said that tells us she couldn’t think of a single reason this man would want to talk to her, but he does anyway.

Taylor used Pixar’s storytelling rule as the frame: 

“Once upon a time there was a ______, and every day ______, until one day ______ and everything changed.” 

He said we all try to fill in that last blank with something. Leaving town. Getting a job. Making more money. Getting married. Having our own place. The woman had five marriages, and Taylor talked about what it would feel like to go into a marriage thinking this will change everything, and then have to go back again. 

Jesus offers her water that doesn’t run out, and Taylor said everything else we put in our story will fail, run out, or leave us going back to the well again. He read Jeremiah 2:13 about people digging broken cisterns for themselves while God has living water right there, free. He ended by saying Jesus wants to be your living water; that in Christ you get a new identity, new life, new forgiveness, new family, and new purpose; and that Jesus is offering you a drink. 

Discussion questions

Getting into the story

1. In the passage, the woman gives Jesus several reasons he shouldn’t be talking to her. What are some reasons people today decide somebody isn’t worth talking to?
2. Jesus, a Jewish man, was talking to a Samaritan woman, two groups that avoided each other completely at the time. Why do people struggle to talk to or connect with someone from a different social group, culture, or background? How do we actively change our mindsets?
3. Taylor mentioned that we don’t actually know how the woman’s five marriages ended, whether it was divorce, death, or something else. Why do you think some people are so quick to assume the worst about someone, be it their past or present?
4. Jesus brings up her past, but Taylor said he wasn’t shaming her. What’s the difference between someone bringing something up to make you feel bad and someone bringing it up to help you?

Digging in

5. Jesus tells her that regular water leaves you thirsty again, but what he offers never runs out. What’s something you were really excited about that felt great for a while and then wore off?
6. This passage paints a picture of people digging their own broken wells instead of drinking from the one Jesus offers. What’s something you’ve seen people chase after that gave them a good feeling for a little while, but didn’t actually last?
7. When nothing else seems to work, one option some people choose is to just give up and go numb. What does giving up look like for someone your age?
8. Taylor listed what you get in Christ: a new identity, a new family, new forgiveness, a new purpose. Which one of those do you need most right now, and why that one?

Questions from the video

9. What are some common “everyday they ______” in your community? Remember we are asking about the issues that people are dealing with.
10. What’s one way that you can share your story in the Pixar structure?
11. What does it look like to be truly satisfied in Christ? Who is an example in your life of what that can look like?
12. Is there a story that you feel like you’re still in the middle of? “Everyday I ________”
13.  Is there someone you can invite to pray with you about this?

For parents, if you only have five minutes in the car

• What’s something people your age deal with every single day that adults mostly don’t notice?
• If you had to fill in “one day ______ and everything changed” for your own life, what would you put there right now?
• What’s something you really wanted, finally got, and then found out it wasn’t as good as you thought it would be?